City Lights Books

Located on Columbus Avenue, City Lights Bookstore is an independent bookstore and publisher, best known for publishing the Pocket Poets Series, including Allen Ginsberg's Howl and Other Poems. Built in a classical revival style in 1907, the once tiny bookshop filling up just the mezzanine gradually expanded over the years to include the triangular storefront, the main room, the barber shop, and basement, until eventually buying the entire building in 2000. Although the first all-paperback bookstore, City Lights now sells both hardcovers and paperbacks from all major publishing houses, along with titles from smaller, harder-to-find, specialty publishers. It also hosts hot-ticket readings, and stays open until midnight daily.

City Lights Books

Located on Columbus Avenue, City Lights Bookstore is an independent bookstore and publisher, best known for publishing the Pocket Poets Series, including Allen Ginsberg's Howl and Other Poems. Built in a classical revival style in 1907, the once tiny bookshop filling up just the mezzanine gradually expanded over the years to include the triangular storefront, the main room, the barber shop, and basement, until eventually buying the entire building in 2000. Although the first all-paperback bookstore, City Lights now sells both hardcovers and paperbacks from all major publishing houses, along with titles from smaller, harder-to-find, specialty publishers. It also hosts hot-ticket readings, and stays open until midnight daily.